Mom just commented on how long it has been since my last post, and she is right. I am out of college and homeschool now, so I have no excuse.

Last week we entertained Nate, (Tiffani's friend from Indiana), and took the opportunity to tour the Kennedy memorial area.

This is a picture of the window from which the rifle was seen.


Here is the spot in the road where the car was when Kennedy was fatally shot.


It was a sobering tour, but very enlightening just the same.



Because Nate had never taken a train ride, we decided to add a little interest to our downtown trip and take the Dart train. On our way back, we got off at CityPlace and rode the McKinney trolley. It was just a piece of the past, and a bit of nostalgia. Here we are waiting for the train.

School Woes

It has been a long time...I know. Our life has just become so very crowded, and I am afraid this is how it will be until spring--at which time, you may hear more from me. You see I have just begun my final round at college. In order to make this the last one, I have taken an extra heavy load. I keep reminding myself that May is coming, and when it gets here, I will be a better interpreter.

Additionally, I am starting a new Bible study on Wednesday afternoons. I am very excited about this. After all, if I am too busy to teach a Bible study, I am too busy.

Tiffani is taking Deaf Culture and Fingerspelling and Numbers. I have class on Monday and Wednesday, (after my Bible study, and before church) while she and Raphalen, (a good friend) have class on Tuesday. On Thursday, the three of us leave home at 3:00, and don't get back until about 11:00. It is a long, very long evening. Thankfully Craig is able to hold the fort while we are gone.



As far as practicum goes...I seriously doubt that I will meet the required 200 observation intern hours. It is really a sad thing--I would like to take advantage of those learning opportunities, but really, people, there are just so many hours in a day. Keep in mind, May is coming.

Craig is busy preaching out every weekend. I miss not going with him, especially when he is flying to other states, but during this season of my life, I must attend to other duties. There will come a time when we will again travel together.

For now, Bethani is excited about planning her birthday sleepover. I'm sure I will have pictures and stories to share...

Our Godly Fruit

God has been good to us. I am so thankful for our children. What an awesome responsibility I feel to set a good example before them. I know that everyday I make mistakes--my prayer is that even in that they will learn and find themselves gracefully righting their wrongs.

Happy 17th Birthday Tiffani!!

Nana and Papa flew in one week early to begin the celebration week. We ate at her favorite restaurant: Macaroni Grill. What a blessing to have family that is so involved in our lives!


















What a great week she had. It started with her favorite: riding horses.
Everyone enjoyed themselves immensely. Even when the horses started running and it didn't look like they were going to stop. Even when the horses had them pressed against the barbed wire fence. Even when it was bumpy. Even when they got off and could hardly walk. Even when, one week later, ankles are battered and bleeding from the ride. They say, "It was worth it."






It is hard to buy surprises for a teenager, so she knew most of her presents.
We did manage to surprise her with a jacket that she had been drooling over. "The White Jacket"








The day after her birthday, Nana flew in again for a day of shopping and lunch at our favorite Japanese restaurant. What fun that was, just the girls. After we took her back to the airport, Tiffani and I finished up our shopping at Arlington Mills.




Well, she is 17 now. A beautiful 17! It seems to agree with her. Her spirit is as beautiful as she is, and I love her.

Clowning Around

Last Saturday Jeremi, Tiffani and I had a blast volunteereing as "Deaf Clowns" entertaining the children. Tiffani was "Bubbles" I was "Troubles" and Jeremi was Juggling JO. My theme for the day was to be just like Bubbles. I tried everything I could to imitate what she was doing. When I grow up, I want to be like her. "Where did you get your shoes?"


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School Has Officially Begun

Yup! We are back at it. Two high schoolers and a 4th grader.

As an added bonus, Tiffani and I will be taking classes at CCCC this fall. Her class, ASL 2 and my class, Int. 2 just "happen" to be at the same time on the same nights. Isn't God good to work out the details for us?


I am looking forward to this new way to bond with my oldest daughter. We will have so much more in common and so much to talk about.

Tiffani's Tutoring

It is so rewarding for me to see my children using the skills that I have taught them. All of the effort we have put into our language skills is paying off now that twice per week Tiffani is tutoring two Hispanic/Iranian boys.

Tiffani's Last Day to Homeschool

Friday was our last day of homeschool for the 2007-2008 school year. As we finished up the final exams, cleaned out desks, filed papers, stored away text books, and averaged grades, there was a different feeling than other years. Friday was monumental. For the past 11 years, I have been Tiffani's school teacher. For nine months out of every year, she has started every school day off at 8 p.m. sharp (well, sometimes not so sharp) writing her spelling list, and then moving on to language, math, history and science. (There were electives in there too. Her most recent elective was French, in which, ironically enough, she scored higher than in English.)

But. Friday was her last day to homeschool. This fall she will be starting the collegiate program in the metroplex whereby she will complete her last two high school years congruent with her first two college years. It is a free program for those who are accepted. Two years from now she will have 2 graduation ceremonies: one for her high school diploma; the other for an associates degree in engineering.

As most of you know, we have used the A Beka curriculum, and it has served us well. She scored extremely high on the Accuplacer entrance exam at the college.

This is a big step for all of us. This is one more step in letting go, and I've got to say, it is tough for the mom in me. These are unchartered waters, however, we have all prayed about this, and we truly feel as though God has opened this door for her. Tiffani has a good head on her shoulders, and when it comes to the big decisions, she consistently makes the right choices. I trust that she is going to be a faithful ambassador for God on that campus this fall.






This is our downsized classroom, ready for the 2008-2009 homeschool year.

Holiday Youth Convention

Pastor prayed for the kids before they left. Can you believe there were 3 vans and 60 people!!!




This is apparently the latest trend. Too bad I don't have a picture of the final "Do". Must have been beautiful!

Nothing More Precious

I have no greater joy than to hear that my children walk in truth.

III John 1:4

In The Kitchen With Orzo

No this is not a person with a big red nose, floppy shoes and oversized mismatched clothes blowing up animal balloons. This is a whole grain that resembles rice in appearance and pasta in texture.

I have recently been inspired by my friend Jaime Gibbs to revisit the idea of whole grains and fresh live foods. She made such a convincing case for oat groats that we made a trip to Whole Foods ourselves today. Of course, it didn't stop with the oats.

The bulk food aisle has always been our favorite. We also had to get short grain brown rice (hopefully like the rice served at P.F. Changs,)whole wheat gluten flour, couscous for Jeremi, millet, sea salt, and the usual granola snack for each person in the car in their own little plastic container.

While standing in front of the little containers with plastic shovels, Tiffani recognized the orzo. She exclaimed, "Oh look mom! They have orzo! Can we get some?" Now, you have to understand that we used to have this little grain from time to time, but it has been a very long time. In fact, I don't think we have had it since we left RV life. We certainly had to get some, even if just for posterity sake.

When we got home, she wanted to cook it up right away. Tiffani found a recipe and began putting it all together. After tasting it 2 or 3 times along the way to ensure that it was 'al dente', she said to me, "It has to be just like I remember."

Well, it turned out nothing like I remember. I would have remembered this one. Tiffani made it very healthy, fat free and delicious! She is a very good cook!

Sweet Sixteen Party

Thank you so much to everyone who came to celebrate this day with us.

The party was a huge success, almost 50 people showed up, making Tiffani feel so special.

Take a look at this brief story of her life:

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Birthday Party Prep

We are right now in the throes of planning a Sweet Sixteen party for our, well, our Sweet Sixteen. My mom and grandma will be flying in today, and my dad will fly in tomorrow. On our way back from the airport tomorrow, we will join Craig at a restaurant of said Sweet Sixteen's choice, and the festivities will begin! I will certainly fill in all of the details when the dust settles.

XMTX

Extreme Mountain Top Experience

Brought to you by SALT:

My teens are involved with SALT: Student Action Leadership Team. It is a group that trains teens to minister. SALT has challeneged my kids to rise to the occasion and take ownership of their generation. It has motivated them to pray, fast, and focus on ministry.

For the past 2 months, we have been driving our kids back and forth to SALT practice in preparation for a huge production. Last week was the event. The SALT team put on an outstanding program for kids called Extreme Mountaintop Experience. Tiffani together with Tiffany were clowns trying to make it to the top of the mountain. Jeremi, playing the devil's advocate, convinced them that they needed alcohol, dirty magazines and videos in order to make it to the top. They soon realized that their load was too heavy, and they needed to get rid of the worldly 'stuff.'

I am proud of my kids. I know that God has a calling on their lives, and if they continue climbing, and never give in to satan's deception, they will make it all the way to the top.

VBS

This week has been VBS at our church. Bethani was the only child young enough to register, but the SALT (Student Action Leadership Training) team worked with the adults to make it a smashing success. There were about 120 children registered, and I believe 10 children received the Holy Ghost. In our family, however, the most exciting thing was how SALT transformed my teens. They were forced to rise to the occasion, and rise they did!

The second day into VBS, after the children went home, the SALT team had practice from 3:30-5:00. Jeremi called me around 4:30 and said that they had started with prayer before practicing, and they were still praying!! They hadn't yet gotten around to practice. He was so fired up about how God was moving and ministering to him and his peers. When they got home, Tiffani was bubbling over with how God had used the Gifts of the Spirit to speak a specific word to them, and it was the teens who were operating in the Gifts!


The week continued in this same way everyday this week. God used Tiffani in the Gifts of the Spirit. I encouraged her not to seek after the Gift of the Spirit, but to seek after the Fruit of the Spirit, and the Gifts will naturally follow. It is awesome to see their enthusiasm and love for the Lord.

Sunday night, the entire youth group rallied around one another, and it was a beautiful thing to watch them pray and support each other. For a while, they set aside their differences, and worked together for a common goal. They asked Jeremi to stand and tell what he felt about the week. He talked about unity and working together to achieve a common goal. I saw the man he is becoming, envisioned the minister he will be, and I felt so proud of him.


Raising Godly fruit can be a long and tedious process. It seems that the fruit will never grow, and then when it does, it seems it will never ripen. I have to confess that there have been many occasions recently where I have wondered if any of what I have been trying to teach is actually getting through to my children. It has at times truly felt FRUITLESS! However, it is the times like this week that I am so thankful that I have not given up. "For in due season, we SHALL reap if we faint not." Thank you Jesus for giving us a hopeful peek into our children's future.

First Day of...Kindergarten?

BEFORE

Okay. So she is too old to be sending off to Kindergarten, but I never did send her off into the big bad world alone to fight all by herself. This is a first. But, I did it. We of course had to do the prayer for protection and Godly influence as well as pictures and 'mo-om' (drawn out in a whiny voice as only an impatient, slightly embarrased teenager can do.) She opened the door, got out, and stayed in that building without my supervision until I came to get her 4 hours later.

Okay. She is 15 1/2 and this was her first day in the real workplace. Yes, my 15 yr old now has a part-time summer job that will probably extend through the school year next year (thanks to the flexible schedule homeschooling provides.) She did well, and was a big hit with the owner and the clients. (Like that is any surprise considering her happy sanguine personality.)

Okay. So she doesn't look much different in the 'after' picture, but this was another big step. She has now officially taken one more step toward independance. I am proud of her. She is a beautiful young lady inside and out, and I am proud to be introduced as her mom.

AFTER

D-Day

D-Day: The day one receives the express writen authority to DRIVE.



Yes. It is true. Tiffani now has her driving permit. After giving the usual fair warning to everyone we know locally that the sidewalks are no longer safe, we made our way to the DPS and successfully brought home that little slip of paper that makes her driving legal.

It was indeed an exciting day. After a few sudden stops at intersections, a few rolling stops, practice with the turn signals (engaged after making the stop before turning) and a scary experience that we won't discuss but involved a fire hydrant between 2 brick mailboxes, I declared Tiffani to be a good driving student!

Next time we are going to actually venture out of our neighborhood.

Mother/Daughter Date

What a joy it was today to connect with my oldest daughter/clone Tiffani. (People claim that we look just alike. I don't see the resemblance, but so many people say it, I have come to believe them.)

After Sunday School, Tiffani chose a Thai restaurant in Plano. We ordered Pad Thai and Tamarind something or other. It was all very good, and WE ATE IT ALL! Then we spent the afternoon shopping before it was time to head back for ensemble practice and then church. It was a great Girls Day Out!